How to Draw an Airplane

Today we’re going create an airplane drawing. Real airplanes are very complex machines with countless details. But drawing a cartoon airplane is much, much easier. There are still quite a few steps in the drawing tutorial but all the lines and shapes are very simple and, as it is a cartoon plane, so they don’t need to be super-precise.

Sketch lightly so that you can tweak your lines later. At the end, you can use heavier lines to trace your sketch and complete the drawing.

The airplane is quite long. Remember to leave enough space for the whole plane to fit on your paper.

​In the guide below, each step is highlighted in a light blue color.

You don’t need any special pens or tools. A regular pencil, eraser, and paper are all you need. If you want, you can also color the drawing with colored pencils or pens.

If you liked this tutorial, see also the following drawing guides: Anchor, Guitar, and Robot.

Step-by-Step Instructions for Drawing an Airplane

We begin the airplane drawing with a curvy line for the stubby nose of the plane.

Continue with another curving line for the cockpit.

Behind the cockpit, draw a long straight line.

In the underside, draw another long line. This line is curving slightly. Also note that the back of the plane is narrower than the front.

Draw a straight, tilted line for the front of the vertical stabilizer.

Complete the vertical stabilizer by drawing straight lines that connect its top with the underside of the fuselage.

Sketch the rudder with a couple of short, straight lines.

Emphasize the nose cone with a curvy line.

Draw a tilted straight line in the middle where the wing is placed.

Add a few straight lines to sketch the wing. The wing is slightly narrower at its tip than at the base.

Draw another wing to the other side. This wing is partially hidden by the plane fuselage.

Add flaps to the wings.

Draw a rectangular shape for the cockpit window. The top and bottom of the rectangle curve slightly following the curve of the fuselage.

Add small squares for the passenger windows. Make the windows on the right side smaller to add some perspective to the airplane drawing.

Add a small circle for the landing gear.

Draw another circle for the other landing gear. Make it smaller as it’s further away.

Add two elongated ovals for the engines.

Draw the engines to the other side. Only one engine is visible behind the body of the plane.

Add a line on the side of the fuselage to make it look a little more interesting.

Erase any extra lines.

Color your airplane drawing. It looks great, doesn’t it?